The Churches at Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum and Thyatira (Revelation 2)

Ephesus: The persevering church

In the opening letter to the church at Ephesus, Christ is
pictured as walking among the seven lampstands, which represent the seven
churches (1:20-2:1). This corresponds to the fact that he is the leader of the
church and is its Savior (John 10:28). Perhaps there is an allusion here to Genesis
3:8, where the Lord is walking in the Garden of Eden with the man and woman he
had created. In each case, the Lord seeks a personal relationship with his
people, and wants to interact with them and be their guide.

The statement about Jesus walking among the
candlesticks recalls an Old Testament promise: “I will walk among you and be
your God, and you will be my people” (Leviticus 26:12). This promise to ancient
Israel is now made to the church, the new Israel (Galatians 6:16).

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This article was written by Paul Kroll in the mid 1990s. Copyright Grace Communion International. All rights reserved.

Each letter is introduced with Christ’s assertion, “I know…”
(2:2, 9, 13, 19; 3:1, 8, 15). Christ is aware of the distresses and persecution
the church members may be suffering. He also knows what they have achieved and
where they have fallen short.

Strengths of Ephesus (2:2-3)

The church at Ephesus had endured in the faith (2:2, 4).
They had suffered for Christ’s name and had not grown spiritually tired. The
church had also suffered the assault of false prophets trying to foist off
heretical teachings.

The false teachers who tried to infiltrate the Ephesian
church are identified under two categories. They are “those who claim to be
apostles but are not” and the Nicolaitans (2:2, 6). Neither group’s practices
or teachings are specifically identified. The latter group will be mentioned
again in the letter to the church at Pergamum (2:15).

The Ephesian church apparently was diligent to
eliminate false teaching, before and after John’s day. Assuming the late date
for Revelation, about twenty years after the book was written, Ignatius praised
the church in Ephesus for rejecting those who spread heretical doctrines
(Ignatius, Ephesians 9:1; cf. 6:2; 7:1; 8:1).

Spiritual problems (2:4-6)

Amphitheater at Ephesus

Ironically, the Ephesian church and its leadership may have
gone too far in rooting out heresy. There was a spiritual problem in the church
described as a forsaking of “first love” (2:4). This is usually taken to mean
the church members’ love for one another.

If this is correct, perhaps hatred of heresy had created
suspicion and intolerance of each other’s differences and weaknesses.
Theological orthodoxy and tests of loyalty may have been substituted for mercy
and compassion. This could have lead to an undue preoccupation with being “correct,”
resulting in the proverbial “straining at a gnat and swallowing a camel.”

This is an important lesson to all Christians. While
doctrinal purity is important to the Christian faith, it can unintentionally
lead to witch hunting and condemning spirit. We can defend the faith only if we
first remember to defend love for one another (John 13:34). Since the Triune
God is love in his essential being, Christians will reflect that love as they
have been spiritually transformed by the Holy Spirit.

The Ephesians’ loss of love was no trivial matter. “It is
treated as though it involved a fall from the Christian life,” wrote G. E.
Ladd, A Commentary on the Revelation of John, p. 39. If the Ephesians
did not repent of their lack of love, Christ said he would remove their
lampstand (2:5). This implies that they would cease to be the spiritual people
of God, even though they may have claimed to do many mighty works in his name (Matthew
7:22-23). (See 1 Corinthians 13:1-3.)

Listen to the Spirit (2:7)

The church was admonished to listen to what the
Spirit of God in Jesus Christ was saying to Ephesus (2:7). The fact that
hearing rather than reading is emphasized infers that Revelation was designed
to be read out loud in public worship. The churches were to listen to “what the
Spirit says to the churches” (2:7). Yet, it is the glorified Christ who
is pictured as speaking in these letters. Christ and the Spirit are equated.
When the Spirit speaks, it is Christ speaking.

This recalls the words of Paul, who said, “The Lord is the
Spirit” (2 Corinthians 3:17). That is not to imply a heretical modalism, where
it is claimed that there is no permanent distinction between the three persons
of the Trinity. The Persons of the Trinity are distinct, as the New Testament
revelation of God’s nature makes clear. But each of the three persons has an
intrinsic interpersonal relationship in triunity. Thus, there is one God whose
three Persons are together involved in our salvation.

Promise to Ephesus (2:7)

As does each of the letters, the one to the Ephesian church
concludes with a note of victory and a promise to those who overcome or
conquer. The conquerors in Christ in these churches are not to overcome an
earthly foe by human force or will. Their struggle is more cosmic and more personal
(Ephesians 6:12). They overcome the world by conquering themselves in and
through the overcoming victory that was Christ’s (Revelation 2:26). The church’s
victory parallels his victory – the eternal victory of the Lamb of God who
overcame by living and dying in faith (3:21).

The overcomers at Ephesus are promised the gift of eternal
life. The symbolism of salvation for the Ephesians is “the right to eat from
the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God” (2:7). These symbols stand
for eternal life in the kingdom of God. The tree of life symbol is used again
at the end of Revelation (22:2). Both symbols go back to the beginning of the
Old Testament. The centerpiece of the Garden of Eden was the tree of life, a
symbol for eternal life (2:9). This is an illustration of the unity of the two
Testaments in their presentation of the gospel.

If Genesis 2-3 describes a Paradise Lost to Adam and
Eve because of sin, then the book of Revelation promises a Paradise Regained
through the blood of the Lamb. The church resurrected to life (the New
Jerusalem) will receive salvation (eat fruit from the tree of life) in the Lamb’s
eternal kingdom (the Garden of Eden and Paradise of God).

Smyrna: The persecuted church

Ancient Smyrna and modern Izmir

The church at Smyrna was a suffering church (2:8). It was
warned about an impending persecution and that some of its members would
experience martyrdom (2:10). The church in Smyrna would soon be persecuted and
martyred by Jews and heathens. This would happen for “ten days” (2:10). Most
commentators take that figure to mean a short but definitely limited period of
time.

Christ’s introductory title as the One “who died and came to
life again” would be encouraging to these potential martyrs (2:8). The church
members at Smyrna could face martyrdom in full confidence. They would be
resurrected to eternal life by the one who himself was victorious over death
through a resurrection.

The members at Smyrna were poverty-stricken people. Yet,
Christ says they were spiritually rich (2:9). The contrast with Laodicea is
significant. The Laodicean church assumed it was rich, but it was spiritually
impoverished (3:27).

Problems at Smyrna (2:9-10)

The church at Smyrna apparently suffered at the hands of a
group “who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan” (2:9).
These Jews thought they were the people of God but were actually the
representatives of his adversary (John 8:31-47). The people referred to were probably
Jewish citizens of Smyrna who opposed the church. They may have been pressing
the local government to take action against the Christians.

Why are these people said not to be Jews? They were
Jews by race and religion. But they were not spiritual Jews, in the
sense that the New Testament defines a Jew. Paul made the point in his
writings: “A man is a Jew if he is one inwardly; and circumcision is
circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit” (Romans 2:29). The church saw itself
as the Israel of God, the “true circumcision” who worshiped God in Spirit and
put its faith in Jesus Christ (Philippians 3:3).

Polycarp, bishop of Smyrna,faces his martyrdom in A.D. 155

Promise to Smyrna (2:10-11)

The church at Smyrna would receive the “crown of life”
(2:10). The crown here is stephanos in Greek, not the diadema, or
royal crown. The stephanos was the victory wreath or trophy awarded to
the winner of the games. A Roman magistrate who performed well also received a stephanos
at the end of his term of office. In like manner, Christians who serve Christ
will receive the victor’s crown in that they conquer the world in Christ, the
Lamb, and the victory is modeled in their faithful service to him (1
Corinthians 9:24).

The overcomers in the Smyrna church will not be hurt
by “the second death” (2:11). Revelation identifies the second death as the
lake of fire (21:8). It is the second or eternal death. This death has no power
over the faithful who have a part in the resurrection (20:6).

Pergamum: a church in the center of heresy and apostasy

Christ introduced himself to the church in Pergamum as one who has the sharp, double-edged sword (2:12). This was another reference taken from the "One Like a Son of Man" image in chapter one (1:16).

The sword is symbolic of the penetrating word of God (Hebrews 4:12-13). More precisely, it is the discerning aspect of the word that "judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart," and from which nothing in creation is hidden. This would have had great meaning in reference to where the members of the Pergamum church lived – in a city filled with the splendor and power of false religion.

The church was reminded that Pergamum’s power structure had
wrongly judged or condemned Antipas, a faithful witness, and executed him
(1:5). But God will judge the world system itself in opposition to God, of
which Pergamum’s power center partakes.

Revelation describes God’s judgment on “the world” in great
symbolic detail. It is represented by the City of Babylon while God’s people
are symbolized by the New Jerusalem. This struggle between the world and the
saints, pictured in Revelation, led one commentator to label the book as a “Tale
of Two Cities.”

The religious climate at Pergamum was not conducive to the
Christian life. That’s because “Satan’s throne” was in the city (2:12). While
the phrase has received differing interpretations, it probably refers to
Pergamum as a major center of pagan religion, especially the imperial cult. The
city symbolized secular power and civil religion working together to do
something Satan wanted.

Problems at Pergamum (2:14-16)

While the church in Pergamum was assaulted from the
outside, it also faced serious internal religious deception. This is described
as the teaching of Balaam and the Nicolaitans (2:14-15). Revelation’s use of
the Balaam typology underscores the book’s reliance on Old Testament symbols.
Balaam’s story is found in Numbers 22-24. He was a prophet who manipulated
Israel into falling under God’s curse. Balaam’s motive was personal gain (2
Peter 2:15; Jude 6). He had been offered riches and power by Balak, a gentile
king, to destroy God’s people, Israel.

Balaam and his donkey

The prophet found a way to accomplish the king’s desire.
Balaam devised a plan whereby he caused the men of Israel to commit sexual
immorality with Moabite women and to sacrifice to their gods in a community
meal during a festival (Numbers 25:1-2). Thus he led Israel into sin by causing
the nation to accommodate itself to idolatrous pagan religion and its
immortality. Balaam came to stand for an evil individual who seduces God’s people
into sin.

But in what sense were members of the church committing
sexual immorality and eating food sacrificed to idols (2:14)? It is generally
thought that this phrase refers to food eaten at festivals in which pagan gods
were honored, as well as the sexual activities that may have gone on as part of
such feasts. However, both expressions could also be understood metaphorically.
That is, they would refer to general religious infidelity engaged in by
Christians who participated in pagan rites and festivities.

Both a literal and figurative meaning may be in view here in
Revelation. Since sexual immorality was sometimes associated with worship in
pagan religion, Christians would be taking sexual license as well as committing
religious infidelity if they participated in the religious practices of the
city.

The Balaamites may have been teaching the converts that
participating in temple feasts or other activities in which the gods were
invoked was not wrong because it served a good end. The unknown prophets or
self-appointed teachers, metaphorically called “Balaam,” were probably
counseling accommodation with the pagan culture. Balaam and the Nicolaitans as
well as another heretical group we encounter later – the followers of a
prophetess named “Jezebel” – probably all taught generally the same thing. G.R.
Beasley-Murray, in speaking of the Nicolaitans, wrote:

They will have maintained that idols are nothing…. Therefore
Christians need not hesitate to take part in pagan feasts, whether among trade
guilds or in temples…. Nor need they be over-scrupulous about acknowledging the
divinity of Caesar, for they can do it in the same spirit as many pagans did –
as a gesture of loyalty to Rome, without religious significance. (Revelation,
p. 86)

Revelation does not reveal the specific identity of the
Nicolaitans, nor does it define all their beliefs. Irenaeus and other early
church leaders claimed that the Nicolaitans practiced unrestrained indulgence (Against
Heresies, 1.26.3). the Nicolaitans would have taught loose morals, probably
under the guise of a deceptive theological rationale.

Following the teaching of the Balaamites and Nicolaitans,
some church members in Pergamum had violated the freedom and grace they enjoyed
in Christ. They had lapsed into a sinful accommodation with idolatry and
immorality. The seriousness of the poor spiritual condition of some at Pergamum
was underscored by Christ’s warning. He would fight against the heretics with
the sword of his mouth (2:16). The mistakes of the Pergamum church are important
lessons to all Christians who must struggle to keep their spiritual balance in
a darkened world.

Promise to Pergamum (2:17)

Those who conquered in the Pergamum church – who didn’t fall
prey to this heresy – were promised salvation under the metaphor of the “hidden
manna” and “white stone with a new name” (2:17). Manna is another Old Testament
symbol. It was the food God supernaturally supplied to the Israelites during
their 40-year sojourn in the wilderness (Exodus 16:11-15). In Revelation the
manna would refer to the spiritual food by which God gives life to his people.
It is, like the fruit of the tree of life, a symbol of salvation and eternal
life.

The meaning of the white stone is less clear. Several
interpretations are possible. That’s because stones were used in a variety of
situations in ancient times. A white stone given to a person at the close of a
trial meant he was acquitted of his crime. This symbolic meaning for the
Christian is clear. Children of God have been exonerated of their sins through
Christ’s cleansing sacrifice. It is through Jesus’ atoning blood that we freely
receive our acquittal. The ideal of judicial judgment would also link the white
stone to the “great white throne judgment” (20:11). This is a symbol of God’s
final, just and merciful judgment on humanity.

Stones also served as admission tickets to public festivals
and assemblies. Metaphorically, this would mean the Christian had been granted
admittance to the messianic feast at the Savior’s return (19:18-19). A white
stone may also have represented a happy and momentous day for the Christian –
the receiving of the ultimate reward of salvation. The English equivalent would
be a “red letter day.” An interesting custom in Thrace was the marking of good
days by a white stone (Pliny Natural History, 7.40.131; Plutarch: Life
of Pericles 64; Pliny, Letters 6:11). God’s intervention in human
affairs and the salvation of the church in the resurrection of the dead will be
a wonderful and momentous time (Revelation 19:1-6).

The color white is characteristic of Revelation. It speaks
of white garments (3:5), white robes (7:9), white linen (19:8, 14), and the
great white throne judgment (20:11). White, in these cases, represents a kind
of spiritual purity.

The meaning of the “new name” written on the white stone
appears to have Old Testament roots (2:17). When speaking of Zion – a type of
the church perfected – Isaiah repeated the promise of God to his people: “You
will be called by a new name that the mouth of the Lord will bestow” (Isaiah
62:2).

The new name represents a new status given to the individual
by God. We see the custom in the Old Testament. Jacob becomes Israel (Genesis
32:28); Abram becomes Abraham (Genesis 17:5); Sarai becomes Sarah (Genesis
17:15). In the New Testament, Saul becomes Paul (Acts 13:9). The custom of
giving a person a new name to go along with a new status was also found in the
Roman world. Octavius became Augustus when he was crowned Roman emperor.

For the Christian, the “new name” would have great
spiritual significance. Christ will give the member a new status. He will be
resurrected into the kingdom of God – with a new existence and unparalleled
glory (Romans 8:18-21). The idea of newness in the “new name” is another theme
in Revelation. We have a new Jerusalem (3:12; 21:2); a new heaven and earth
(21:1); a new song (5:9; 14:3). And God says at the book’s end, “I am making
everything new!” (21:5).

Thyatira: the faithful and persevering church

The person pictured as speaking to the church in this letter
identified himself as the Son of God (2:18). While this title is implied
elsewhere in the book, it is used only here. Two closely allied titles from
John’s vision in chapter 1 began the letter – the figure’s blazing eyes and
feet that appear as burnished bronze (1:14-15).

Christ praised the church for its love, faith,
service and perseverance. The range of praise regarding Thyatira’s spiritual
status was perhaps the widest given to any of the seven churches. It was the
only church that is said to have improved its spiritual condition (2:19).

Problems at Thyatira (2:20-23)

Elijah, Ahab, and Jezebelin Naboth's vineyard

However, the church did need admonishment on one vital
issue. The church had tolerated the teachings of a false prophetess. She is introduced
only by a metaphorical name – Jezebel. Her teaching is defined in the same way
as the teaching of Balaam in the church at Pergamum (2:14). Jezebel, says
Christ, “Misleads my servants into sexual immorality and the eating of food
sacrificed to idols” (2:20). A parallel to the evil queen of Ahab was intended
(1 Kings 16:29; 2 Kings 9:30). Both the original Jezebel and this unidentified
prophetess threatened to destroy the true worship of God among his people.

The original Jezebel’s sin was leading Israel into idolatry,
but she was not accused in the Old Testament of leading a sexually immoral
life. Rather, her sin was in teaching others to follow religious immorality and
faithlessness to the Lord (2 Kings 9:22).

This indicates that we can take the expressions of censure –
“eating food sacrificed to idols” and “committing adultery” – in a figurative
sense to mean idolatry. We should also be reminded that the Old Testament
presented idolatry, apostasy and infidelity to God in terms of sexual metaphors
– as sexual immorality, fornication, adultery and prostitution (Exodus 34:15,16;
Deuteronomy 31:16; Jeremiah 3:6; Ezekiel 23:19; Hosea 9:1). John used adultery
as a metaphor of idolatry elsewhere in Revelation (17:2; 18:3).

In the church at Thyatira, this Jezebel probably counseled
accommodation with the world. Robert H. Mounce says, “The fornication of which
Jezebel was not willing to repent was her adulterous alliance with the pagan
environment” (The Book of Revelation, p. 104).

Her theology, as spread by her counterparts in the Thyatira
church, would be especially attractive to members who were in workers’ guilds.
To reject guild membership would cause one to suffer economic deprivation.
However, to be part of a guild required participation in its pagan religious
festivities. The temptation to compromise one’s Christian beliefs must have
been strong for many church members. Robert H. Mounce explains:

In a city whose economic life was dominated by trade guilds
in which pagan religious practices had become criteria for membership, the
Christian convert would be faced with the problem of compromising his stand at
least enough to allow participation in a common meal dedicated to some pagan
deity. To reject this accommodation could mean social isolation and economic
hardship. The Book of Revelation, p. 103)

To be a member of a guild almost certainly would have meant
participating in religious idolatry, immorality and debauchery. Thus, there is
a dual meaning to the accusation that the Jezebel group practices “sexual
immorality.” Revelation’s “Jezebel” (as well as “Balaam” and probably the
Nicolaitans) suggested the Christian could be in agreement with the world and
still be faithful to Christ.

The Jezebel party probably would explain that “an idol is
nothing at all in the world and that there is no God but one” (1 Corinthians
8:4). Participation in pagan worship was really a meaningless activity. They
would have reasoned that believers did not need to hurt themselves economically
by refusing to accept a few harmless requirements posed by trade guild
membership.

“Jezebel is to be counted amongst those to whom the claims
of commercial success speak more loudly than the claims of Christ,” says
William Barclay (The Revelation of John, volume 1, revised edition, p.
107). The Jezebel party apparently presented its teaching in strong theological
wine, providing an excusing rationale that seemed to dispel any contrary
arguments. Their theology is called “Satan’s so-called deep secrets” (2:24).

This phrase is usually explained in two ways. It may be an
ironic twist on Jezebel’s own claim. Her followers may have claimed to be more
spiritually sophisticated. They may have distorted Paul’s teaching, claiming to
understand God’s will more deeply than the “self-righteous” majority who
thought it ungodly to pay homage to the emperor as a god and to engage in
debauchery (1 Corinthians 8:4; Romans 14:17). But Revelation says that the
Jezebel party is the one that has fallen into the depths of a spiritual pit
Satan has dug.

Another explanation for “Satan’s deep secrets” is that
Jezebel, like the later Gnostics, taught that only by descending into the
depths of evil could one appreciate the heights of God’s grace. Paul had argued
against a similar idea in the church at Rome (Romans 6:1).

A majority of the church at Thyatira did not buy Jezebel’s
reasoning. However, the church still apparently allowed this group’s teaching
to continue within its midst. It had the “Corinthian disease,” which tolerated
sin in the church, possibly in the misguided interest of being big-minded (1
Corinthians 5:1-7).

The issue has more than historical interest. It concerns us
vitally. Says Leon Morris: “Every generation of Christians must face the
question, ‘How far should I accept and adopt contemporary standards and
practices?’ On the one hand, Christians must not deny the faith. On the other,
they must not deny their membership of society” (Revelation, revised
edition, p. 71).

Christ had been patient, hoping for a change of heart in the
Jezebel faction (2:21). But the group had refused to repent of their teachings.
Thus, the moment of judgment had arrived. Jesus warned that he would cast the
compromisers on “a bed of suffering…unless they repent” (2:22). The Greek word
here is simply “bed.” The translators have caught the Old Testament idea behind
being on a bed. It meant to be sick or injured (Exodus 21:18). To be cast on a
bed would mean someone had inflicted suffering upon you.

The Jezebel faction – if they remained unrepentant –
would become an object lesson and be brought to justice. The fact that God is a
God of justice as well as mercy – that being a Christian is serious business –
would become evident to “all the churches” (2:23). Here is another indication
that the message to each church applied to all seven. The majority at Thyatira
who did not hold to this “gospel of expediency” was counseled to hold on to
their spiritual understanding (2:24). They would have no other “burden” imposed
on them.

Promise to Thyatira (2:24-28)

The church members at Thyatira were encouraged to continue
in the faith – “until I come” (2:25). They were to be overcomers and do Christ’s
will to the end. “This is the nearest we have in the seven letters to a
definition of the conqueror,” says G. R. Beasley-Murray. “He holds fast the
traditions of faith and life delivered to the Church til the coming of Christ
(v. 25) and he keeps Christ’s works till the end (v. 26) – whether that ‘end’
be the Lord’s parousia or his own death” (Revelation, p. 93).

The promise of salvation is described as “authority over the
nations” (2:26). The overcomer will “rule them with an iron scepter” and “he
will dash them to pieces like pottery” (2:27). These statements were taken from
Psalm 2:9.

Some scholars feel that the original wording gives a
somewhat different meaning than the English. Ruling should be understood more
in the sense of shepherding. Wielding an iron scepter should be seen more in
the context of a shepherd’s staff or club, used firmly but with tender loving
care. If so, there is still the problem of how to understand the companion
phrase, “…he will dash them to pieces like pottery” (2:27). The sheep are given
guidance; the enemies are shattered.

Whatever the case, the meaning is clear: The now powerless
church existing under human government will have power over the nations under
Christ. The saints will inherit the earth, as Christ said (Matthew 5:55). And
they would judge the world in whatever way that “judging” is to be understood (1
Corinthians 6:2).

The church at Thyatira was also promised the “morning star”
(2:28). Several explanations have been offered for this symbol. Perhaps Christ
is in view here, if we are guided by his symbolic self-description at the end
of Revelation: “I, Jesus…[am] the bright Morning Star” (22:16). To “have” Jesus
as the Morning Star would mean to be in his glorious presence – to be with him.
This would explain the promise that in the resurrection the saints glorified
will be with Christ, wherever he is (John 14:3).

By:

Paul Kroll

2002

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